


A Record of Animals of the Supernatural Variety

by Arytra



Series: Section 123 [15]
Category: Sesame Street (TV)
Genre: Also lots of animals, And Gina is the best vet, Even when they drive her nuts, Fluff, Gen, Humor, Penelope is protective of her agents, Pretty much fluff and humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2019-06-08 18:02:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15248871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arytra/pseuds/Arytra
Summary: Penelope has a hard time saying no when her agents really want something.  Sure, it's easy when it's stopping them from driving recklessly or causing trouble, but when it's something that they aren't intending to cause mischief with, well, she is their superior and she will protect them from their ideas.  Even if it involves housing every supernatural creature in the city.  This time, however, some good might just come from it.





	A Record of Animals of the Supernatural Variety

Marco was his mother's son in exactly one major way: His love for animals. Unfortunately for Penelope, this did not show itself as Marco staying out of trouble and healing baby birds or becoming a veterinarian. Far be it for the child who was primarily raised by the quietest and unlikely to cause trouble members to actually follow in their footsteps. There were few times in her life she had been afraid of another person and she could probably list them all off on one hand. Facing Gina after Marco had let her know of his intention to become an agent had been one of those times. Yet, while he decided to become an agent, he still had his mother's uncanny ability with animals, just not necessarily poodles and calico kittens.

“Agent Jefferson,” she said through clenched teeth. “Just what do you think you're doing?”

She was busy focusing her attention on Marco or she would have turned that glare on her other two agents who had calmly walked back with him. Fortunately, Travis seemed to be on her side at the moment as he was just starting at the creature in Marco's arms. “It's hurt.”

Penelope's look softened a bit. “None of us know how to heal firehounds, Marco,” she said. “And even if we did, his parents might come back for him.”

“Look how skinny he is, Penelope,” he said, showing her. She had no idea how animals worked, but she was pretty sure he was right. “I don't think his mom is coming back.”

There was silence for a moment and Penelope groaned. “Get him in the car. We'll get him back to the office and call your mom.”

Marco started to and then looked at her. “We're calling Mom?”

“No, you are,” she grumbled. “She's less likely to yell at you. Besides, we need a vet.”

“Won't your boss be mad?” Travis asked. Penelope shrugged.

“I'll handle it.”

***

Penelope watched as Gina looked the puppy over, careful to not get burned when it sneezed fire. Gina looked at Penelope. “Are you going to keep it?” She asked. Fortunately, 'we have a sick puppy' had been the focus of Gina's attention and not 'we totally brought a fire hazard back the office' instead. 

“Of course not,” Penelope answered. “It's a wild animal and he's old enough to be on his own once he's better. Aren't you, boy?”

The puppy just wagged its tail. Gina looked dubious but continued on. Let her be dubious. She had already let the others know that this was not an option. Besides, Bob would probably count it as a dragon and that would go against her eternity long goal of making sure he didn't get around animals that could set him on fire. She heard the door open to the room. “Agent Carson!”

“Yes, Sir?” She said, glancing at her newest boss.

 

“Is that a fire hound?” He demanded, pointing at the puppy. She immediately looked around the vicinity as if trying to find what he was looking at. Finally, she looked at the puppy.

“Are you talking about my cousin Gina's Pekingese, Snickerdoodle?” She asked with feigned surprise and a a tad bit of worry for the man's mental health. “Are you feeling alright, Sir?”

Her boss did not look amused. “Agent Hugh!” He snapped. Donovan glanced over. “What is that?”

“Snickerdoodle,” he said and she was extremely proud that he was able to say it without any laughter or even a twitch of a smile. “Yeah, I don't get Pekingese either. Their faces are all flat.”

Her boss glared at him and then back at her. “Agent Carson...”

“Sir?”

“How long is that 'Pekingese'...”

“Snickerdoodle.”

“How long is Snickerdoodle going to be in your office?”

“A few days. Gina here is heading out of town,” she lied smoothly. He turned and stormed out. Gina looked at her.

“A Pekingese?”

“Yep.”

“Did you freeze up like when you were helping Gabi and couldn't think of anything better?”

“No,” Penelope answered. “I just didn't care to come up with a better answer. So, is 'Snickerdoodle' going to make it?”

“He'll be fine. Just follow these instructions.”

“Thanks, Gina.”

***

After they successfully got 'Snickerdoodle' back into the wild, Penelope hoped that would be the end of it. It was not. “Why is there a Manticore in my office?”

“I'm relocating him,” Marco answered. “I just need to figure out where.”

“They have cages for that,” she mentioned. He gave her a horrified look. “Fine, cat carriers. It's the same thing.”

“It is not,” Marco answered. “And I got him in here without one.”

“I take it my other two missing agents and suppposed partner are running interference for you?” She asked. He gave her a sheepish smile.

“Travis said that if I'm going to do these things, then I should be able to face you alone about it,” he answered. “It won't be that long...”

“Manticore!” Both of the agents paused and looked at the doorway to see a junior agent pointing at Penelope's temporary roommate.

“I'm assuming you're talking about my nephew Elmo's pet Himalayan, Flufferbomb?” She asked. “I admit that it's an unusual name, but I wouldn't say he's a Manticore.”

“Himalayan? Cat?” The agent asked. Penelope nodded.

“Of course.”

“Oh,” he answered. Penelope was a little worried he was going along with this, but she supposed she was technically his superior. “Sorry to bother you, Ma'am.”

“You have a good day,” she said, shutting the door. “This is the last one, Marco.”

“Okay.”

It was not.

***

“That's a thunderbird...”

“My Grandfather Harold's canary, Tweety,” she answered.

***

“Is that a pegasus?”

“My Grandma Harriet's miniature horse, Snoot.”

***

“Cockatrice!”

“My brother David's hen. Bubbles.”

“Agent Carson, is there a relative of yours that does not have a pet?”

“Apparently not. You should see my sister Linda's dog, Barkley. He's huge.”

“Larger than Snickerdoodle?”

“Well yes, Sir, but Snickerdoodle was a Pekingese.”

“...Of course.” He snapped and left the office. Penelope whirled on Marco.

“A cockatrice? Those things are dangerous! Donovan, sneak up behind Bubbles and cover its eyes with a cloth, will you? Kathy, help him.”

“Sure, Boss.”

“Listen, Marco,” Penelope said. “You can't just keep bringing home half the city. We work on Sesame Street. Yes, due to some other events in the past, I feel the need to check up on other areas, but we are not a supernatural animal control. Understood?”

“Yes, ma'am,” he grumbled.

“And you three! Stop helping him,” she commanded.

“Yes, Boss,” resounded from Donovan and Kathy while Travis quickly agreed with “Yes, Penelope.”

She nodded to them. It would happen again, but at least she tried.

***

She wished she hadn't sent Marco back to the car so quickly, but the situation had gotten out of control and they weren't even supposed to be there. She was making her own way back to get to the car and then take off toward Sesame Street when she slipped, twisting her ankle. She groaned, more for the fact that Susan was going to have such a fit over this rather than the ankle itself when she heard the fighting shift toward her. She pulled herself up and felt her hands fall into thick, black fur. Glowing red eyes looked back at her and she tried not to swallow. This was not a good sign, if she remembered her knowledge of the Black Hounds correctly. She was pretty sure this was the equivalent of a banshee. Then again, books were often wrong, something she was not about to tell Linda, and maybe this wasn't as bad as she thought. As she steadied herself against it, the dog acted like a crutch. It took her a minute to adjust, but they slowly made their way back.

“You know,” she said, feeling the need to fill the silence or distract herself from the sounds of the ogre and goblin fight behind her. “You're not even the largest dog I've seen today.”

The dog didn't answer, not that she expected it to and just kept moving forward. She saw the car as well as both Marco and Travis who came running to her. Penelope patted the dog's head as they came to help her to the car. She turned and looked at it, waiting for it to take off, but it just sort of laid down. Marco looked at her.

“You found a dog?” He asked.

“I found a Black Hound,” she answered. Travis looked at it curiously.

“He doesn't seem to be a harbinger of death,” he mentioned.

“Can we keep him?” Marco asked. Penelope was about to remind him that just because the hound looked like a large dog didn't mean it wasn't wild and wanted to be out in the city when she saw its ears perk up at the suggestion.

“He's not a pet,” Penelope said. Marco and the hound both looked disappointed. Travis did as well, making him once again the worst coparent ever when it came to discipline. “He's a working dog. I don't want to hear any complaining when he has things he needs to do because you lot want to play with him. He lives in my apartment. We will have some ground rules here.”

Marco outright cheered and she was pretty sure that Travis wasn't much better. She glanced back the way they'd come and remembered why it had been important for her to get out of there. “Everyone! In the car! Now! Marco! You drive.”

Travis didn't complain but helped her into the car. The hound followed after, laying quietly inbetween the seats. He put his head on her knee and she pet him quietly. Travis looked at her. “I give it a week before you lose control over the dog situation.”

“I find it amusing that it will take a week,” she answered. “Fortunately, we work primarily on Sesame Street. Other than joining me at the office and on rounds, there's no problem with him spending time with other people. And Barkley. Mostly Barkley.”

“I thought you said no dogs unless they were Barkley's breed.”

“He's big, somewhat fluffy, and good-tempered. Seems like Barkley's breed to me,” she said. “Just... a little more grey.”

“Like you try to be?”

“Like I am,” she answered. “And like Shadow is.”

“We're calling him Shadow?” Marco asked.

“Yes.”

“Better than Snickerdoodle,” Marco answered with shrug. She gave him a stern look that informed him that she didn't think he was funny when she'd been working hard to cover for him. He just ignored that look and she didn't press it. They made it back to Sesame Street without trouble. To none of their surprise, Shadow easily walked through the barrier. Sure enough, one of the kids ran to get Susan while Travis and Marco helped her to the stairs.

“Penelope?” Susan asked, looking her over. “What happened?”

“I slipped,” she answered.

“And sprained your ankle,” Susan answered. “You're going to have to take it easy over the next bit.”

“Not a problem. I'll use some of that vacation time I probably have,” she answered. Susan looked past her toward Shadow and then back at her. The hound moved closer, leaning into Penelope while also seemingly keeping an eye on Marco and the children.

“I thought you told Gina that you weren't going to keep the fire dog thing,” she said.

“I didn't,” she answered. “We put him back and he's doing fine on his own. Marco keeps checking up on him, but he's been doing so less and less.”

“And what do you call that?” Susan asked, not even a little annoyed but completely amused.

“Shadow,” she answered. At Susan's look, she continued. “He's a Black Hound. Different species. Less fire involved. He's just very large, very smart, and has unusual eyes.”

“They're glowing.”

“That's just the magic part,” she answered. “I'm guessing he's going to be able to start figuring things out faster.”

“Like?”

“Like knowing before a kid gets hurt and stops them. Or sensing if a hurricane is coming. Or knowing when someone is going to get pregnant before they actually are pregnant,” she answered. “They usually are able to tell if someone is going to die, but I'm very much not dead right now so I think he's a little different.”

“Sounds good to me,” Gordon said, stepping out the door and sitting down next to his wife. “We could use the help.”

“Penelope says he's a working dog and we're not allowed to whine about it when he isn't here,” Marco informed them. Penelope just nodded. “Travis says that won't last long.”

“Travis is probably right, but at least try,” Penelope answered. Susan nodded firmly in agreement. Before they could say another word, they heard a bark and the sound of Barkley coming at them. Bob was trying to get the dog back under control, verbally, which just caused Susan, Gordon, and Penelope to share a look and use the correct sign to stop the dog and then make him sit. Travis looked at Bob sympathetically.

“Signing, Bob. Barkley responds to signing,” he said. Linda was headed over as well, having seen the commotion. Shadow stood back up and looked at the larger dog before going into proper dog greeting behavior while Barkley just wanted to play. Once he was satisfied, Shadow easily crouched in the same way and easily played with Barkley.

“He can't hurt Barkley, can he?” Susan asked.

“I don't think so,” she answered. “And I don't think Barkley can really hurt him either so it works out.”

_“You got a dog?”_ Linda asked as she made her way over and stood by Bob. The two dogs racing off while Marco followed to keep an eye on the situation.

_“More we got into a little trouble and the dog got me out of it.”_ She answered, motioning to her leg. _“And then the three of them ganged up on me.”_

“You gave in very quickly,” Travis argued, speaking and signing at the same time as they all did once Linda arrived. “We asked, you started to protest, and then you gave in. I think you want to keep him.”

“I think you're lucky Susan says I'm not supposed to be up right now,” Penelope grumbled.

“Penelope, don't threaten Travis. Travis, don't antagonize Penelope,” Susan said. Travis looked sheepish. Penelope ignored her.

“Anyway,” Penelope continued. “It didn't seem right to leave him when he wanted to come.”

“How much trouble were you in?” Gordon asked.

“I said a little.”

“Travis?”

“Near death experience,” he answered. She glared at him hard. “But it would have been okay if Penelope hadn't hurt her ankle. And now we have a dog!”

“A working dog,” Penelope argued. “And Linda? I'm going to need all of your books on dogs. And your information on dogs. Because I've been taking care of Travis for years, but Mr. Hooper says it's not the same thing.”

“Mr. Hooper is right,” Travis answered, trying to glare at her. “But Penelope is right that we're going to need help.”

_“I'll be happy to but isn't he not really a dog?”_ She asked. Penelope looked thoughtful and shrugged.

“He's at least half dog and half spirit or whatever. So I'll try stuff and we'll see what works,” she said with a shrug. Travis looked at Linda.

“Which is why we really need your help,” he insisted. Penelope didn't argue with him.

_“We'll figure it out.”_ Linda agreed. _“I think that Barkley is going to enjoy having a new playmate.”_

“He's waited long enough,” Penelope answered. “And we should probably have Gina look him over, but he seems okay. Just not a puppy.”

“Is that your way of saying that he's old?” Bob asked.

“That's my way of saying he's like us: Eternally a certain age,” she answered. “And that age is not a puppy.”

“Penelope!” Big Bird's voice caught her attention. “Marco says the new dog is yours. Can we play with it?”

“I don't see why not as long as he's here. But Shadow has to go to work with me so he won't be able to play all the time,” she said, trying to sound stern and failing miserably. Big Bird just nodded.

“Okay!” He agreed as he and the other children headed back to the dogs. Penelope leaned back.

“This is going to be a long... how long do I have to stay off my leg for, Susan?”

“A week.”

“Week,” she said. “At least I'll have company. Travis, try to make sure they don't burn down my office, the Department, half the city while I'm gone.”

“They won't!” Travis said, sounding absolutely scandalized by the thought. They looked over to see Gina headed toward the two dogs and checking over Shadow who put up with it a lot better than Barkley who just wanted Gina to be done so they could continue playing. Both Marco and Gina headed back toward the stairs with a gentle smile.

“Marco says you twisted your ankle and got a dog?” She said, sitting down next to her.

“This one isn't fire-breathing,” she offered. Bob looked up at them in surprise.

“There are fire-breathing dogs?” He asked. He paused and looked at Gina. “You've seen one?”

Penelope was quick to interrupt. “No, Bob. I have a list of supernatural creatures you aren't allowed to see. Dragons, phoenixes, fire hounds... Are you noticing a theme yet?”

“Hey!” Bob said. Susan leaned over and hugged Penelope.

“I love it when you're on my side,” the older woman told her. Penelope grinned.

“It's for his own good,” she agreed.

“I can handle it,” Bob tried.

“No you can't,” Gordon, Susan, and Penelope said in unison. Travis and Marco both gave him a sympathetic shrug. Linda just nodded her agreement. Gina promptly stayed out of the argument and turned back to Penelope.

“He's looks fine to me, but I don't usually help supernatural animals,” she answered. “I can't even give you an accurate age.”

“Not puppy still works,” Penelope assured her. “We should let the other protectors know he's here so they aren't worried, but I think Shadow and Barkley kind of made sure everyone knows they exist. Thanks for looking him over, Gina.”

“Anytime.”

Later that night, resting in her bed after Travis argued that he'd handle the cooking for the night and please stop trying to do everything, she made a movement with her hand to call the dog to her. He rather gracefully leapt onto the bed and rested his head on her good leg. She looked at him, smiled, and pet his head. She'd need him to learn the same signs that Barkley knew since it would be safer for her not to have to verbally give commands in the field. And she'd need to get him his own vest for identification and safety purposes. But this definitely seemed to be working out just fine. And maybe it would stop Marco from bringing home every animal he could find, otherwise she was going to need a lot more family members.

It did not stop Marco, but to be fair, it was a lot harder for her boss to question her when he was greeted by a large black hound staring into his soul when he bothered her, so maybe the situation was solved anyway.


End file.
